The Nation Newspaper

Category: Law

  • Bill on juvenile offenders for National Assembly

    Bill on juvenile offenders for National Assembly

    Will the adjudicating and sentencing guidelines produced by the Nigerian Law Reform Commission  (NLRC) for juvenile offenders serve its purpose? ADEBISI ONANUGA reports 

    Stakeholders converged on Makurdi, the Benue State capital  last week to fine tune a draft adjudication and sentencing guidelines for child offenders.

    The guidelines are based on the provisions of the Child Rights Act 2003. It is intended for use by judges and magistrates  to enable them operate uniform process in adjudicating  and sentencing erring child across the country.

    Mainly, they are meant to create platform for child offenders at pre-trial and after trial stages.

    The stakeholders, drawn from selected states, had representatives from ministries of justice. The judiciary was represented by  judges and magistrates; states’ ministries of women affairs; representatives of the Child Protection Network (CPN) among other NGOs; social workers; the Police and Commissioners of the Nigeria Law Reform Commission (NLRC).

    The three-day conference which held in collaboration with the NLRC, the United Nations Children Education Funds (UNICEF) in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and funded by the European Union(EU) at Smile View Hotel, Makurdi, between August 11 and August 15, was considered a critical part of  Justice sector Reform programme for the country. It is a five-year programme initiated to  provide support to key stakeholders at various governmental levels and in nine focal states and the FCT. The nine states include, Imo, Anambra, Benue, Yobe, Katsina, Lagos, Osun, Cross River and Bayelsa.

    The guidelines reflected the legal and social protection requirements provided in the Child Rights Act.

    At the conference, professionals in justice delivery sector and other participants committed to justice sector reform and the protection of child rights, carried out a comprehensive  critique of the draft guidelines, with a view to improving  and finalising  the document.

    Once finalised, the guidelines will be forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and states’ Attorneys-General before it is placed before the National Assembly for an  enactment of necessary law to back it  usage by the judiciary across the country.

    In reviewing the draft guidelines, participants were grouped and given specific tasks, using specific formats to arrive at decisions that would be in the best interest of the child. This is to ensure that the final document comes out in simple, specific and unambiguous language.

    Examples of offences critiqued include stealing of food of low value from a local shop; stealing of high value items like mobile phones on the street (pick pocketing); planned stealing of lady’s handbags by groups or gangs; assault (single blow) with lesser harm and lower culpability; sustained or repeated assaults with greater harm and lower culpability. There are also planned assaults with a degree of premeditation or group attack and or with use of weapon with greater harm and higher culpability; terrorism; possession of explosives or weapon courier; terrorist attacks including failed attacks and use of psychotropic substances- first incident and very small amount, where the child is a regular user, where the child repeatedly use drug and failed to respond to previous orders.

    Other offences include rape-sexual intercourse involving child offender of similar age, who consented; penetration involving a victim of similar age, who did not consent and penetration involving a victim, who didn’t consent and at least one aggravating factor among other specified offences enumerated in the draft guidelines. The various groups made their suggestions and recommendations as appropriate, and the specifics were agreed on in the interest of the child by participants.

    Participants  shared their experiences on the field. One of them, Lilian Ekanem, said the role being played by Child Protection Network (CPN), other non-governmental organisations and traditional institutions must be recognised and supported by government for the protection of children in Nigeria.

    Ekanem, who is the Chairperson, Cross Rivers State chapter of CPN, said her suggestion was as a result of her experiences on the field. According to her, whenever there are issues of children against the law or rape among others, the organisation is always the first to be called, even by the police, to give assistance because of their experience and knowledge on child related issues. She said in spite of her organisation’s lean resources, the police depend on them for funds for transportation and investigation of abuses. She said they also bore cost of laboratory tests and medications in the case of rape.

    Taiwo Akinlami, who is Executive Director, Child Protection Solution (CPS), Lagos, said the organisation discovered disparities in states that have domesticated the CRA 2003. He lamented that in spite of the high crime rate involving children against the law and large number of police stations, only two stations, Alakara and Adeniji-Adele, have specialised units for child protection. He noted that efforts to include child protection in the curriculum of the Police College have proved abortive to date, including lack of budget for police training.

    Benue State Chief Judge, Justice Iorhemen, Hwande, described the conference as lively saying that most of the issues thrashed by participants are very important in the CRA and in the interest of child offenders.

    Justice Hwande said Benue State has domesticated the Act and is at the stage of implementation. Efforts, he said, are in advanced stage to get the family courts in operation in the state. He said when this is done, judges and others from the state, who came from the Ministry of Women Affairs, would be of great assistance in the implementation of the Act and the guidelines.

    UNICEF Programme Coordinator, Vernice Guthrie, said the forum provided opportunity to talk about a practical framework to give the CRA a firm footing and complete implementation for use in the court and by other key institutions.

    Vernice described the development as a critical begining and part of a much neeeded multi-purpose process for the courts, adding that UNICEF is committed to making the CRA and the guidelines to work for the courts in Nigeria and in the interest of the child offenders with the support of the EU.

    She said participation at the conference has been fascinating, but according to him, there is still a lot to be done to change participants’ mindset and imbibe the new information process to ensure delivery in all areas of the CRA and in the scheme of things.

    On how to reach the states that have not yet domesticated the CRA, she said the programme  would serve as templates for other states.

    Vernice said UNICEF is committed to providing technical services and support to other states to domesticate the CRA into law.

    Chairman, Nigerian Law Reform Commission (NLRC), Prof. Oserheimen Osunbor  said the essence of the conference was to evolve guidelines for bodies involved in handling cases of child offenders. He noted that the conference was well attended as it had in attendance, not just commissioners of the NLRC, but also UNICEF representatives and other stakeholders  involved in advocacy on the right of children.

    Osunbor said it was heart warming that   participants are well informed and  have been working as specialists on child protection and rights, including lawyers and non-lawyers, the police with vast experience on matters concerning the rights and protection of children.

    He stressed that the quality of their contributions reflected their cognate experience on the field, adding that their contributions enriched deliberation and would impact positively on the outcome of the exercise.

    He said the project emanated from the first stage of the sentencing guidelines project embarked upon by his commission in 2012. “It is one of the project directed at introducing the draft bill for purpose of giving legal effect to the use of sentencing guildelines by judges and magistrates in Nigeria.                       ”It is one of that project, in the sense that that bill which would be passed by the National Assembly (NASS), hopefully at some future time, would lead to the establishment of the Sentencing Guideline Council under the headship of the Chief Justice of Nigeria(CJN).

    “And the responsibility of the council is to come up from time-to-time with a guideline of the sort that we are doing now and of the such that we would be in phase two of the project which was directed and devoted to some specific offences”, he stated.

    UNICEF consultant on the implementation of the CRA , Leila Nazarali had earlier taken participant through the draft guidelines and appropriate approaches to developing corrective measures. She said the adjudicating guidelines would serve as practice direction for judges and magistrates and other institutions that are going to use the document. Leila explained that the most important aspect of the Act is to ensure that the child offender is not seperated from the parents and that detention is used only as a last resort.

    Leila said in the course of her tour of the states in Nigeria, she discovered widespread disparity and disproportionate sentencing because of unfettered discretion enjoyed by those adjudication. She said the guidelines would help to ensure that children are given uniform sentences for same offence in all the states of the federation.

    Chairperson of Federation of International Women Lawyers Association (FIDA) in Bayelsa State, Mrs. Pere Egbuson said cases of child offenders are most of the time reported to and handled by the association. Egbuson said they have had to contend with issues of ages of the child offenders particularly onn criminal offences. She said plans to domesticate the CRA has reached advanced stage following their particiapation in the UNICEF workshop on the implementation of the Act in June, this year.

  • Union urges West Africa to fight Ebola

    The Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU) West Africa has called on the countries in the sub-region to join forces in the fight against Ebola Virus

    Nigeria is the third nation to declare a national state of emergency announced as the death toll of the devastating Ebola epidemic nears 1,000 people in the region.

    Records show that  the incurable disease which has spread through Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria, has infected over 1,779 people in West Africa.

    A statement by  the Vice-President PALU,  West Africa Mr. Emeka Obegolu reads in part: “The Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU) West Africa,  notes with grave concern the unmitigated spread of the Ebola virus across the West Africa sub-region leading to the declaration of International Health Emergency by the World Health Organisation today of August 8, 2014.

    “PALU (WA) calls on countries in West Africa to deepen corporation and collaboration in the areas of research, containment and information dissemination on all issues relating to the Ebola virus and spread thereof.

    “PALU (WA) notes the widespread misinformation and sometimes misleading theories spread through the new media and social networks and thereby calls on governments and their agencies to establish dedicated and authoritative source of official briefing of the citizenry on the measures being put in place for containment of the disease and the responsibilities of the citizenry in that regard.

    “We urge the various health agencies in the West Africa sub-region to accord victims of Ebola their dignity as human beings as provided under the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and the respective National Laws of member-states.’’

    “We call on the governments of the member states to dedicate human and material resources to medical research as a means of early detection and eradication of such diseases.

    “Finally, PALU calls on citizens to support the effort of all the agencies involved in the fight against Ebola virus and always confirm alleged treatments drugs/herbs with the authorized agencybefore testing the cure or spreading the news”. Obegolu stated.

  • Court urged to restrain EFCC in land sale dispute involving ex-Minister

    Court urged to restrain EFCC in land sale dispute involving ex-Minister

    Can the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) validly reopen a case five years after a court held it lacked the powers to investigate civil transactions devoid of criminal elements? Can a party a completed transaction return to demand a refund having been adequately compensated?

    These form part of issues a Federal High Court in Abuja has been invited to determine as it opens hearing today in a suit seeking to, among others, restrain the EFCC from reopening investigation into a civil contractual dispute involving former Information Minister, Emeka Chikelu, a firm – Bedding Holdings Limited and a businessman, Alhaji Dahiru Barau Mangal.

    The applicant in the suit – a fundamental rights enforcement application – the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bedding Holdings, Sylvester Odigie is contending that EFCC’s move to reinvestigate the transaction, which was completed in 2005 and over which a court had given judgment, amounted to flouting a subsisting court order restraining it (EFCC) from dabbling into a private contractual dispute.

    He contends that since there were no new developments in the case and the EFCC having failed to appeal the restraining order made against it in 2009 by Justice Ishaq Bello of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in suit: FCT/HC/M/4949 the commission could not validly reopen the case upon a b fresh petition by Alhaji Mangal and his company – D. B. Mangal Nigeria Limited.

    Odigie argued that it was unlawful for Alhaji Mangal and his company to prompt the EFCC to re-arrest and detain him about six years after a court had pronounced on the dispute between them, penalized the commission for its unlawful involvement in the case, and issued a perpetual restraining order against the EFCC and its agents, stopping them from further harassing or inviting him over the issue

    The applicant, in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/534/2014, with EFCC, Alhaji Mangal and his company as respondents, is claiming N100million damages against the respondents for subjecting him to emotional, psychological and bodily trauma; social humiliation and embarrassment following the EFCC’s threat to re-arrest him.

    Odigie, who was earlier arrested and detained by the EFCC for 57 days in 2006 over the same issue, wants the court to declare as illegal and a violation of his rights plans by the EFCC to re-arrest and detain him the second time over his company’s sale of its land known as plot 527 within the Cadastral Zone A7, Wuse District, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to Alhaji Mangal and his company.

    He equally seeks an order of perpetual injunction restraining the EFCC and its agents from further taking steps to re-arrest and detain him in respect of the transaction or inviting him on the instigation of Alhaji Mangal and his company as such actions amount to a violation of his fundamental rights and the subsisting restraining order issued against the commission in a January 15, 2009 judgment by Bello.

    The applicant stated that his company – Bedding Holdings – had in 2005 sold the plot of land to Alhaji Mangal and his company through their solicitors, Messrs Shehu Wada and Co at N125million. He added the buyers only made payment having been convinced by the outcome of the searches it conducted at the relevant government agencies including Department of Land Administration and Resettlement of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA).

    He added that some months after the transaction was complete and when Alhaji Mangal and his company were about to commence development, they learnt that the FCDA has reallocated the plot to then Minister of Information, Emeka Chikelu and his company, Jimec Company Limited, prompting Alhaji Mangal and his company to demand refund from Bedding Holdings.

    Odigie averred that his company consequently sued the FCT Minister, FCDA, Alhaji Mangal and two companies owned by Chikelu – Jimec Company Limited and Matterson Properties Limited – in its bid to recover the land for Alhaji Mangal and his company.

    He added that despite the pendency of the suit marked: FCT/HC/CV/1074/2006 filed by his company before the High Court of the FCT, the EFCC, upon a petition by Alhaji Mangal and his company, arrested and detained him for 57 days (from May 22 to July 12, 2006) and was arraigned before Justice Abubakar Umar of the FCT High Court on allegation of obtaining money under false pretence.

    Justice Umar struck out the case on January 27, 2009 for want of diligent prosecution by the EFCC. Justice Ishaq Bello (also of the FCT High Court) upheld Odigie’s fundamental rights enforcement suit, with which he challenged his detention by the EFCC for 57 days.

    The judged, in the January 15, 2009 judgment, declared EFCC’s conduct illegal, awarded N3million damages in the applicant’s favour, and ordered the commission to tender public apology to him and restrained the EFCC from further harassing, inviting or arresting him over the land sale issue.

    Justice Bello, in the judgment, a copy of which is included in the bundle of documents filed in the fresh fundamental rights enforcement suit, deprecated the conduct of the EFCC and held that “it is regrettable to observe that it is now fashionable to dress civil cause with criminal regalia in order to satisfy the yarning of some powerful beings.

    “It is outrageous and indeed, a demonstration of abuse of power. The powers of the EFCC operative are circumscribed by law and do not in my view possess the power to enforce private contract between the applicant’s company and Alhaji Mangal. The EFCC is a creation of law and must be seen to operate within and under the laws. It is not a matter of choice.”

    The applicant stated that while he was in custody, the FCT Minister, upon the intervention of the Information Minister (Chikelu), reallocated another land at plot 1405 Zambezi Crescent, Off Aguiyi Ironsi, Zone A05, Maitama to Alhaji Mangal and his company as compensation for the plot his (Odigie’s) company sold to them and which was wrongly revoked.

    He averred that Chikelu, who claimed to have expended about N300 million in the development of the Wuse 2l and, approached him last year and appealed to him to withdraw the suit filed by his (Odigie’s) company challenging the purported revocation of its right over the Wuse 2 land.

    Odigie stated that on realising that Alhaji Mangal and his company had been compensated with “a bigger” land, Bedding Holdings acceded to Chikelu’s request and withdrew its case in April this year after Chikelu paid it (his company) N150m to cover the cost of the suit, lawyers’ fees among others in line with the agreement signed by parties signed an agreement as condition for to discontinue the suit.

    The applicant said he was however taken aback when, in June this year, he got a letter from the EFCC, written by Head, Economic Governance, Olufunke Adetayo-Ogunbode, directing him to report to Usman Imam for questioning on the same 2005 land transaction between his company and Alhaji  Mangal and his company.

    He stated that the fresh invitation by EFCC is based on a fresh petition by Alhaji Magal’s lawyers, who are again seeking the refund of the N125m he paid for the 2005 transaction even when Alhaji Mangal and his company have fully developed the new plot with which they were compensated for the wrongly revoked Wuse 2 land.

    The applicant, who has also filed a fresh suit to among others, compel Alhaji Mangal and his company to accept the N125 million, which Bedding Holdings was willing to refund on the condition that they (Alhaji Mangal and his company) give up ownership of the plot on Zambezi Crescent, Maitama, which was reallocated to them as compensation for the Wuse 2 plot, which was wrongly revoked.

    Alhaji Mangal, in the fresh petition by his solicitors and, on which basis the EFCC seeks to reinvestigate the transaction, is seeking the refund of what he paid for the Wuse 2 plot on the ground that, Bedding Holdings having allegedly been paid Chikelu’s companies – Jimec Company Limited and Matterson Properties Limited – to withdraw its suit, he (Mangal) was entitled to a refund.

    In a letter written by his lawyers dated May 26, this year, Alhaji Mangal said he was aware that Odigie and his company had been paid by   Chikelu’s companies to discontinue the suit against the purported revocation of the their right over the Wuse 2 land and requested that the N125 million he paid in 2005 be refunded.

    In their response to the suit by Bedding Holdings, Chikelu’s companies, sued as fourth and fifth defendants, denied any wrong doing. They argued that the plaintiff lacked the locus standi and urged the court to dismiss the suit.

    They claimed to have been duly allocated the land and argued that, even if the plaintiff had any interest in the Wuse 2 land, it could no longer sustain the suit because the party to which it sold the land (Alhaji Mangal) had been duly compensated with the land on Zambezi Crescent, Maitama.

    Respondents in the suit were yet to file their response as at last Friday. When the case came up last Thursday, Justice Adeniyi Ademola ordered the applicant to serve the motion on notice on the respondents and fixed hearing for today.

  • Implementation of laws will stem piracy

    Implementation of laws will stem piracy

    Justices of the Supreme Court and Courts of Appeal and judges from the Federal High Courts converged last week on Lagos for the Mainframe Seminar. Hassan Bello, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council, says the learned men called for the implementation of the municipal laws to stem piracy on our waters. Legal Editor JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU met him.

    WHAT is your assessment of the just concluded Maritime Seminar for judges?

    The 13th edition of the Maritime Seminar for Judges has been adjudged yet another success, what is frightening is that every time we have this seminar, the bar keeps on rising , what was unique about the 13th edition of the seminar was that it was organised by a couple of young  men in Nigerian Shippers Council who were my successors in the Legal Department and  you could see the difference they brought in, the innovation and this time we had the highest participation of judges.

    What do you mean by this?

    Yes, we had the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, the Minister of Transport, President Court of Appeal, Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, so all the heads of our superior courts of record were there.  We had six Supreme Court Justices, 31 Judges of the Court of Appeal, and 30 Judges of the Federal High Court,  but more instructive is that we about 80 Judges from the States High Courts. We also had about 54 members of the public, mostly lawyers who paid a token fee  to participate in the Seminar. We also had a representation from the Judiciary of Ghana, the Union of African Shippers with headquarters in Cameroun and also Niger Shippers Council. So it was attended by both Judges and lawyers all over the Country. The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Marine transport, Senator Zainab Kure was also there and we had representation from a cross-section of the maritime industry.

    What issues were canvassed and how do you think they will move the maritime sector forward?

    The issues that were discussed at the seminar were quite relevant and germane for the growth of Nigerian economy. The issues were of significant, we talked about piracy which is a burning issue, and called for the implementation of municipal laws to govern piracy because there is a lacuna there, we talked about the liability of terminal operators, insurance of oil and gas carriage and the Admiralty Jurisdiction Act (AJA). More significantly, we also looked at the introduction to maritime law and admiralty Jurisdiction for the new judges who were there in the over all, I think that we had a very successful seminar by all dimensions.

    The Federal Government has appointed the Shippers Council as economic regulator in the maritime sector. How far have you gone with this assignment and what are the challenges of this responsibility?

    The appointment is a confirmation of the fact that Shippers’ Council has always had some regulatory powers. The Federal Government has shown so much concern about activities at the ports, it has realised the importance of the ports to the economy of this country. So, it has made concerted efforts to make sure that our ports are efficient, they are competitive and that our ports should be positioned so that the contributions of the maritime sector to the national economy  will be substantial. According to the concession agreement, there ought to be an economic regulator right from the onset, but coming right now, it is not too late but you will agree with me that we have a peculiar task because the game had already started when we were introduced. But all the same, because of our pedigree and experience at the NSC, we have been able to brace to address the situation.

    How are you going about this responsibility?

    The first thing that we did was to have wide consultation with all the stakeholders and this consultation has yielded a lot of positive results.  Because we have been welcome warmly, are now an arbiter, we are the referee,  we neutral and  we are transparent. But most of all we are scientific,  all we want to do is to sanitise the ports to make sure that our ports are friendly and efficient.To make sure that our ports are competitive and to ensure that Nigeria becomes the hub of the trade in the region.  Since that time, we have been on it and we have met with all the segments of the ports system and even beyond. We are talking with the truckers, the freight forwarders, the terminal operators, we are talking with the shipping companies, the Nigerian Ports authority (NPA), we are talking with the  Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Authority (NIMASA),  the Nigerian Customs Service, Immigration and so on. We have gone to them and explained our role in the system and now we are consolidating.

     How are you consolidating?

    Yes, we have started actual negotiation with the Shipping, what we want to remove now is arbitrariness, a situation where people or some section fix prices any how without  reference to the Nigerian Shippers Council be you NPA, terminal operator of a freight forwarder it must now be understood that there is an economic regulator. We are on the right path, it is not a quick fix and I also know how impatient Nigerians are, they should give us time to firm up our activities before the results will manifest. Already, we have abrogated certain charges and this will go a long way in consolidating our position but our own is not just to abrogate charges, our own is make sure that each participant or player in the port industry does  its work properly, efficiently, with high level of transparency within the ambit of the law in the overall interest of Nigerian economy.

    What are the major problems of the ports?

    What is really lacking is co-ordination; there are so many interests at the ports; so many players, so you will need to have co-ordinator, you need to have a supervisor, you need to have a referee, you need to have somebody  who will introduce balance and symmetry,  because these things must be done in unison and in a perfect order. What we have now is  a les affair, brigandage  or  chaos at the ports and that we are not going to accept.

    What level of support have you enjoyed from the government and operators in the port system in pursuance of these objectives?

    We have had tremendous support from the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE); they have given us tremendous support, we also have had support from Nigerian Customs Service, the Immigration, players like the  shipping  companies and terminal operators, the freight forwarders. So, we are going scientifically, we going systematically, openly and transparently to do these things.

    A corollary to good port system is a good and efficient  transport system. Apapa road has become a night mare of a sort in recent times, how does this affect your regulatory role in the ports? What steps have you taken to make sure good are seamlessly moved to and fro the Nigerian ports.?

    The Federal Government is so concerned about what is happening in Apapa  that they have taken practical steps to find a solution to it. The Special Assistant to the President on Valuation and Monitoring of project,   Prof. Monye  Sylvester together with the Special Assistant to the President on Maritime affairs, Olugbenga  Leke Oyewole,  Shippers Council, NPA, other stakeholders had a meeting recently , this role has been given to us to co-ordinate because what is happening in Apapa first, I think the Port met the city and you will have some problems with that. Some part of the road also is motor able, there is no call system or any system at all put in place to make sure that these trailers are there only when they are needed. So what you have is chaos and chaos will not bring sanity at all, it makes the port environment unwholesome, so we cannot have that so Shippers Council has been given the same role of coordinating this and we are now talking to the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), we are talking with a task force that has been set up, we are talking to Lagos State Government and some agencies.  It is the whole system of traffic management that has to be overhauled. We all the trucks, most of them unserviceable trucks coming to carry goods, there are so many accidents on the way, the containers are not latched to the body of the trailers; these are some of the infringements. The containers fall on the roads and block everywhere, this cannot continue to happen. There must be a well regulated system and the Shippers Council is talking with the Federal Government about this.

    How do you intend to do this?

    We want to make sure that even the truckers must have a system. For example, you cannot, register unless you have so and  so number of trucks, you must have an office, you must have a tracking  system and some other facilities. What we have is one man with his motor boy, it is the motor boys between 17 and 18 that drive those trucks. The owner is somewhere sleeping and waiting for his motor boys to bring money to him, that kind of things can never happen again. So, we want  to reorganise the truckers for their advantages and for their own benefits.  We have to inspect the vehicles together with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), the Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) and so on, there must be some conditions and criteria for them to operate,  so Shippers Council is bringing  the whole system together with the NPA and other stakeholders. Secondly, in respect of our traffic management and our truck management system, we ought to have a tracking base, we need to have an effective marshalling yard so that these trailers are well parked when they are not  needed, up to the gate of the NPA, there ought to be some electronic platform, a call system so that trucks are called in only when they are needed it not like what obtains now where you see a lot of vehicles and people moving up and down doing nothing actually, we are advocating that there  must be a system in place.

    People have advocated for the relocation of the tank farms as a solution to the problem, what is your reaction to this?

    The tank farms are  also causing some obstruction at the ports; no doubt,  we must also find  the best way  to manage the tank farms. It is not just like saying remove the tank farms or don’t remove them no, we are studying the system to see how best we can handle the situation. Apapa ports are city ports and access to the ports are mainly by roads. A port should have other modes of transport; they should have  a well defined expansive rail system; they should have linkage with inland water ways so that goods are effectively evacuated but here, we have roads and these roads are not exclusive to the ports, they also lead to other  places and are equally used by individuals. All of us use the port roads, so do the trucks and  the tankers; so you could imagine the chaos and the attendant challenges; that will not happen in other ports that we are developing in this country.

    How are you handling the new ports?

    The situation actually is modern deep sea ports, they have expansive roads, railways, and other facilities that are exclusive to the ports only. Even when you come to Apapa, you will see the difference, it really needs serious coordination. We are seriously meeting over this issue of access roads and I am sure that we are going to find a solution to it.

    Before your appointment as the Executive Secretary of the Council, you had advocated for the expansion of the ports through the establishment of the Dry Ports, otherwise called the Inland Container Depots ( ICD).

    What is the role of the ICDs in the chaos in Apapa?

    The ICDs  are also long term solution to the congestion at the ports and the unwholesome activities of  that we have in respect of access to Apapa because if you have an off dock facility in Ibadan for example, the trucks will stay in Ibadan, all of them have no business coming to Lagos to go and line up in Apapa.  At the Dry Ports, the goods will be inspected there, duty paid. They are ports just like Apapa port or Tincan Island port, only that you don’t see water there.  This definitely reduce congestion, for trucks to come all the way from the north to Lagos to carry goods, nobody does that  anywhere in this  world, so we have to rely on these Dry Ports. The Minister of Transport is on top of it and you know he set up a committee which has provided a legal solutions. These ports are ports of origin and ports of destination, which means that you can consign your goods to these ports, you can have your bill of lading reading Liver- pool to Isiala Ngwa and they will be inspected there.  So, you don’t need all these trucks  coming to Apapa, we are on it and very soon, pa ublic declaration will be made.

    The idea of 48-hour clearing of goods in the country was canvassed, how feasible is this and what is your take on it?

    This is feasible and it is one of the things which we are pursuing. We had a discourse where all the stakeholders came around and we were discussing the 48- hour clearance; we are building a lot of bridges to make sure that Nigerians are able to clear their goods within the shortest possible time without stress. This will definitely promote trade and enhance economic growth. We cannot have the primitive way of clearing goods any more, it cannot happen and that is why we said that freight forwarders will have to be re educated, they should be able to stay in their offices and clear their goods without coming to the ports. We don’t need a multitude or an army of freight forwarders loitering around the ports, no, it is not going to happen, it will soon to an end.

    How are you going to achieve this?

    The shipping companies must provide platforms, the terminal operators must provide electronic platforms just like the custom is doing, leading the way and the Shippers Council will coordinate. We will have a high command where we will co -ordinate information, where we will co-ordinate trade  facilitation,  with this arrangement, you will clear your goods  within 48 hours. It is the human content that has made our ports nauseating,  it is the human content that has made our ports corrupt. The Shippers Council will not allow that to continue, so we are working on several fronts, the work is enormous. I want Nigerians to trust the Federal Government, to trust the Shippers Council and to trust all the other agencies working at the ports because we are all working for the same purpose but what is lacking is co-ordination and the Shippers Council is providing that now.

    It was reported that you met with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Is  the bank part of the agencies working at the ports. What is their own role in the scheme of things?

    The CBN, in fact, all banks are critical to port operations. Since 2008, the Nigerian Shippers Council has been confirming the reasonableness of trade freight rates as a precondition for the purchase of foreign exchange from the CBN by commercial banks on behalf of shippers for the payment of freight rates or Charter party fees. This is done to stem capital flight from the country and to ensure that these freight rates are reasonable, because some people inflate this freight rates and the Nigerian Shippers Council  is statutorily enabled to make sure that these freight rates are reasonable,  they are obtainable in the market, what we have is the use of freight rates as capital flight. Shipping companies operating in Nigeria  are  supposed to have disbursement account through which their principals abroad will finance them for any payment that is not done in local currency.

    All local port charges are supposed to be paid in Naira, not in U.S. Dollas, many deposit  banks were not aware of the illegality of sourcing foreign currencies locally for the payment of freight related charges. The payment of such fees with Nigeria’s foreign exchange amounts to capital flight that affect the nations balance of payment negatively. So, we have collaborated the CBN and our position is that we have statutory powers regarding monitoring and stabilising of freight rates in Nigeria which by extension gives us the power to know how much a shipper has paid to the shipping companies for the purpose of negotiation of freight rates or charter party fees.

    What was the purpose of this?

    The purpose of this was to stem capital flight and also to make sure that these freight rates are reasonable because some people inflate rates and Nigerian Shippers Council is statutorily enabled to make sure that these rates are reasonable, they are obtainable in the market. What we have is the use of freight rates as capital flight, all shipping companies operating in Nigeria are supposed to have disbursement account through which their principals abroad will finance them for any payment that is not paid in local currency. All local port charges are supposed to be paid in Naira not in US Dollars, money deposit banks were not aware of the illegality of  forcing foreign currency locally for the payment of  freight related charges, the payment of such charges with Nigeria’s foreign exchange amounted  capital flight that affect the nation’s balance of payment negatively. So, we have collaborated with the Central Bank and our position is that we have statutory powers regarding monitoring and stabilising freight rates in Nigeria, this by extension gives us the power to know how much a shipper pays  as freight to shipping companies for the purpose of negotiation of freight rates.

     

  • Right to life as mother of all rights

    Right to life as mother of all rights

    The book begins with an overview of the 16 chapters. It starts with the first chapter, which deals with constitutional concepts and focuses on the primary concern of constitutional law. The second chapter is focused on the legal regime of amalgamation in Nigeria, which the authors indicate as absent in earlier works. Chapter three chronicles the journey from Nigeria’s dependence to independence; Chapter Four looks at constitutional developments in Nigeria from 1900 to 1999 beginning with the annexation of Lagos in 1861 and carefully reviews all constitutions from the Clifford Constituion of 1922 to the 1999 Constitution.

    Chapter five specifically addresses the literal and liberal approaches to interpretation of the constitution. It looks at the canons of interpretation and focuses on the interpretative jurisdiction of the judiciary on account of Section 6 of the 1999 Constitution. Chapter Six looks at the Fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy. Chapter Seven deals with fundamental rights, here each of the constitutional provisions on Fundamenatl Rights were clearly set out and discussed with the aid of decided cases. Chapters Eight, Nine and 10 deal with the Judiciary, Executive and Legislature respectively. Chapter 11 covers citizenship; Chapter 12 deals exhaustively with the principles of locus standi. Here the authors contend that the rigid rules about locus standi have to be relaxed and brings a new dimension, that all tax paying adults in the local government council area are to be invested with the rights to call the council to order whether or not their individual interests are adversely affected.

    Chapter 13 examines access to information as fundamental human right, it juxtaposes the experiences of the other jurisdictions to bear on the issue. Chapter 14 covers both freedom of information as well as national security in Nigeria, it touches on Nigerian secrecy laws, the scope of the Freedom of Information Act and the concept of national security. Lastly, Chapter 15 and 16 deal with presidential powers and states of emergency as it has been invoked in the governance of Nigeria. The chapter reviews the first state of emergency declared in Nigeria in 1962 and the cascades to the emergency declaration in Plateau and Ekiti States  under President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. In these last two chapters very salient legal and constitutional questions are raised

     

    Constitutional law concepts

     

    This chapter begins with the rudimentary, reminding the reader of the relevance of certain very salient concepts. Perhaps this chapter would be considered to be one the most crucial as it lays the foundation for further discourse. The authors begin by classifying pertinent concepts that pertain to the constitution and follows with some relevant definitions. It is worthy to note that the authors think that “no country can afford to have a weak central government that will have coordinate powers with state government in this present age of science and technology when the survival of countries, as a whole, is the main concern of federal governments”, further proffering that what is needed is equality of states and central governments in a federation

     

    Legal regime of amalgamation in  Nigeria

     

    This chapter gives a brief historical account of the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern protectorates and the real reasons behind the amalgamation and the system of administration adopted. The chapter addresses  various academic studies on the economic and fiscal policies of the British before 1914 and the impact of the unprofitability of two separate protectorates as a result of the vast territory without the requisite manpower which would not have been in the interest of the British had they not been brought together. The authors review the system of indirect rule as practised in the Northern and Southern protectorates and the setting up of an advisory body known as the Nigerian Council which served mainly as a deliberation and advisory body. The authors are critical about the council and refer to various scholars who indicate that traditional chief had no functions at all. Very interestingly, the authors are of the view that if the objective of the colonial administration was the independence of Nigeria, then this had hadly begun because Nigerians were bystanders.

     

     Constitutional developments in Nigeria from 1900-1999

     

    This chapter is an empirical research on constitutional developments in Nigeria since the annexation of Lagos in 1861. The historical nature of this chapter is central considering its relevance in giving the reader an in-depth understanding of Nigeria’s constitutional history. By the nature of this chapter, it shall be considered the most important. The chapter begins with the administration of three entities (the Colony of Lagos, the Protectorate of Southern Nigeria and the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria) under Lord Lugard which was later reduced to two entities in 1914 and in 1919 became the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. The authors review the Clifford era where a new legislative council was set up and later gave birth to the Clifford Constitution in 1922, the principle feature being its elective principle and political awakening. The authors also review the Bernard Bourdillon era which led to the Richards Constitution in 1944 which had at its mainstream to bring the Northern Provinces into the Nigerian Political development, this brought about some criticisms as the North had no political organisations.

    The authors also discuss another important landmark in our constitutional history, which is the breakdown of the Macpherson Constitution. The authors indicate that inherent in the constitution are the perceived weaknesses in the system which include its failure to provide responsible government at the centre due to allegiance of ministers to their regions,  hence the Lyttleton Constitution was born and heralded as the first genuine Federal Constitution of Nigeria that enhanced the standard of the Regional Legislatures and governments. The authors also drew light on the Independence Constitution of 1960 which brought various fundamental changes, so also was the review of the Republican Constitution of 1963 to reflect more realistically on the independence and sovereignty of Nigeria and was promulgated as an entirely new independent instrument to reveal its indigenous character and political autonomy

     

    Principles of constitutional interpretation in Nigeria

     

    This chapter focuses on the Interpretative jurisdiction of the Judiciary by virtue of Section 6 of the 1999 Constitution which confers judicial powers and in so interpreting the courts have recourse to certain canons or rules of interpretation as justice of each case demands. In this chapter the authors look at the canons of interpretation of statutes and also make a distinction between interpretation of statutes and constitution. The authors give an exhaustive discussion on the literal and liberal approach and rightly recall the case of Attorney-General of Bendel State .v. Attorney General of the Federation as the premise for constitutional interpretation.

    Fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy

     

    This chapter looks in detail at the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of States Policy, with the particular novelties in the 1999 Constitution which were absent in the 1979 Constitution. The authors have looked at Sections 13-24 of the 1999 Constitution and highlight various novelties. Unfortunately, the authors reiterate the non-justiciability of the rights and indicate that they run subsidiary to the fundamental rights contained in Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution.

     

    Fundamental rights

     

    The authors state that the rights as enshrined in the constitution are the rights which the executive, the legislature and the judiciary are all enjoined to protect. This chapter is thoroughly exhaustive as the authors will give a very detailed analysis on all the rights as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution. Firstly, the authors begin with the foundation of making the very important distinction between human rights and Fundamental rights and further  classifying the rights into three categories, absolute, qualified and protection rights. It is based on this classification that authors go on a voyage on the analysis of every right as enshrined in the constitution.  The authors review the Right to Life as the first generation right and acknowledge that the right to life is the mother of all rights known to mankind and further indicate that the right to life is an inalienable right and individuals lack the ability to forfeit it. The attitude of the courts on the Right to Life in Nigeria was carefully analysed by the use of case law. It is worthy to note at this juncture that the chapter is an explosion of case law and review and the reader is placed at a vantage in a clearer understanding of the intricate nature of these rights. The case of Bello v. A.G of Oyo State whichclearly gave an exception to s.33(1) where the apex court unanimously held that by execution, the deceased had lost both his right to life and the right to prosecute his appeal. Also the authors introduced the case of Gbemre v. Shell where the Nigerian Federal High Court held that the Right to Life in Nigeria is extended to healthy environment

     

    The Judiciary

     

    One of the important tenets of our Constitution is the Separation of Powers. Here, the authors have given an exhaustive analysis on the judiciary, particularly focusing on its independence. This chapter lays some very fundamental issues, apart from the preliminary which deal in part with the jurisdiction of the courts, here the authors have delved into more complex issues. They juxtapose the provisions of the 1979, 1985 (Draft) and 1999 Constitution. The authors look at various innovations in the latter constititution as well as impediments as it affects the independence of the Judiciary.

     

    The Executive

     

    In this chapter, the authors look at the merits of the Single Chief Executive as opposed to the plural executive of the parliamentary, here the authors contend that the single chief executive has the merit of unity, energy and dispatch which are the ingredients of good government. The authors further analyse aspects of the constitution that strengthens executive independence, most profoundly discussed was the case of Incorporated Trustees of Nigeria Bar Associationand others v. Attorney-General of the Federation. In this case, the authors challenge the constitutionality of the action taken by the National Assembly and uphold the view that the decision was unconstitutional.

     

    The Legislature

     

    The legislature does a whole lot more than law making, the authors will reveal the constitutional balancing roles and numerous oversight

    This chapter deals with the details of the legislative arm of government and will reveal its numerous oversight responsibilities. This chapter brings out the relevant constitutional provisions regarding their powers, functions, composition, and how members can be removed. The authors contend that watertight compartmentalisation is old fashioned and unworkable in the present democratic setting, thus why the representatives of the people in the legislature have oversight functions. The authors further postulate that the constitution makes no pretence to turn the legislature to an alternative judicial body which runs contrary to the theory of separation of powers on which the constitution stands.

     

    Citizenship

     

    The chapter reviews citizenship in Nigeria by looking at citizenship pre and post independence. The authors highlight past constitutions and the present constitution created under section 7 of the Independence Constitution of 1960, chapter 2 of 1963 Constitution, Chapter 3 1979 Constitution and now Chapter 3 1999 Constitution. Interestingly, the authors note that all constitutions failed to provide for the definition of a Nigerian Citizen but rather provide for the means of its acquisition and other matters relating. The chapter basically reviews all rights guaranteed by the constitution for the enjoyment of citizens, how citizenship can be acquired in Nigeria by virtue of s.25, 26 and 27, denunciation of citizenship s.29, Deprivation of citizenship s.30 and dual citizenships s. 28 of the 1999 Constitution.

     

    Judicial interpretation of the principle of Locus Standi in Nigeria

     

    This chapter adduces the reasons for the existence of the principle of locus standi and its characteristics. It gives an in-depth analysis with case law on what constitutes sufficient interest or not. The chapter is subjected to a thorough critical analysis and will expose the reader to very interesting arguments on whether or not there are consistent criteria for the granting of locus standi. This chapter is in several folds as it looks at locus standi in enforcement of fundamental rights, the position of the Attorney General and the inherent abuses.

    The controversies surrounding the issues of locus standi is well discussed by the authors in this very exhaustive and lengthy chapter. First, the authors address its strict interpretation as encapsulated in the case of Adesanya v. President 1981 2 NCLR 358 which was decided under the 1999 Constitution and then  makes a shift to a more lenient interpretation by virtue s.36 (1); s.46 (1) and s.6 (6) (b) of the 1999 Constitution and Order 1 Rule 2(1) of the Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure) Rules and arrives at the revolutionary judgement in the case of Fawehinmi v. President F.R.N (2007) 14 NWLR (Pt 1054) 275

    Flowing from  Section 46 (1) of the 1999 Constitution where the proceeding for human rights enforcement is instituted by the victim only, the authors analyse it from the view of Locus Standi to enforce Human Rights on Behalf of a Person. Here the authors elaborate on some very interesting case law, Richard Oma Ahonaruogho v. Governor of Lagos State and Ozekhome v. The President.The authors also brilliantly do a comparism between  Section 46(1) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria and Section 18(1) of the 1996 Constitution of Botswana and identifies the problems inherent in the restrictive interpretation of the two provisions. The author’s identify and proffer that the s.38 of the 1996 Constitution of South Africa has a very robust interpretation and is wider than the Nigerian and Botswana Constitution.

     

    Access to information as a  fundamental right

     

    This chapter focuses on the desirability of having access to information as a fundamental right and the compelling arguments for and against it. The authors bring in very compelling postulations from various scholars on the subject matter, some are worthy of mention The authors have rightfully quoted Sekhar, who states that “democracy requires an informed citizenry and transparency of governance which are vital to its functioning and also to contain corruption to hold governments and their instrumentalities accountable to the governed”.

     

  • Democratisation of NBA

    Democratisation of NBA

    Being the speech delivered by Femi Falana (SAN) at the Bar dinner of the Ibadan branch of the NBA in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    I also opposed the appointment of the immediate past President of the NBA, Mr. J. B. Daudu (SAN) as the Chairman of the National Disciplinary Committee on solid legal  grounds. Since the NBA executive led by him had sent several petitions alleging professional misconduct on the part of a number of lawyers I was of the strong view that the  committee headed by him could not hear and determine such matters on the principle of nemo judex in causa sua. To back up my position I drew the attention of the NBA leadership to the case of Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee v  Fawehinmi (1985) 7 NWLR 300. Although my suggestion was also ignored some lawyers have  challenged the competence of the committee to sit in judgment over them on grounds which are similar to my objections.

    Shadrath Ramphal, a former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, once asserted that “the law has a greater, more positive, more exciting role in discerning change and legitimising progress. It is a role played consistently over the ages as the law fulfilled its noblest purposes with consumate discretion in such areas as hman bondage, desegregation and women’s rights”. In recent time, the law has been discredited in Nigeria by some judges and senior lawyers. While successful lawyers are smiling to the bank the rule of law is yielding place to impunity. Already, chaos and disorder have become the order of the day in many parts of the country. As I noted a few weeks ago, all the election petitions and corruption cases which have exposed Nigeria to ridicule, locally and internationally, were handled by eminent Senior Advocates of Nigeria. To save the legal profession from itself the  NBA has to lead a campaign that will lead to the restoration of confidence in the legal system.

    In view of the serious security challenge facing the nation, Nigerian lawyers should  rise up and join other patriotic forces to save the democratic process from imminent collapse by campaigning against official impunity which is the bane of political instability in the country. In the ongoing war on terror the NBA should ensure that the Joint Task Force does not engage in the violations of the human rights of the people in the north east zone. With respect to the  Chibok girls the NBA should pressurise the Federal Government to release the wives and children of suspected boko haram members in exchange for the  release of the abducted girls. It should be pointed out to both sides in the conflict that abduction or detention of innocent persons in lieu of their wanted relations is unknown to the Nigerian criminal justice system.

    To remain relevant the NBA has to address the  security and welfare of its members. In the last one year, not less than 10 lawyers have been killed by assassins, armed robbers and terrorists. The NBA ought to launch a fund to cater for the family members and dependants  of such lawyers. Since lawyers have become vulnerable like other unprotected citizens the NBA ought to launch a life insurance policy for its members. I also suggest that the NBA should take up all cases of extra-judicial killings which are now on the increase throughout the country.

    Since the national NBA is comatose some of its branches  have not been found wanting in commenting on national issues. Embarrassed by the development the NBA leadership decided to gag branches by asking them to refrain from issuing statements on national affairs. Happily, the illegal ban was treated with disdain . It is particularly worthy of note that some civil rights lawyers have continued to defend the interests of the people through public interest litigation. Just a few days ago, Olisa Agbakoba SAN. A former NBA president  won the legal battle for financial autonomy for the judiciary.  Another colleague has secured a court order restraining the Federal Road Safety Commission from compelling vehicle owners to pay for new plate owners with effect from June 1st, 2014.

    In a suit filed against the removal of fuel subsidy by Bamidele Aturu, the federal high Court held that the decision of the Federal Government to allow market forces to determine the prices of petroleum products was illegal and unconstitutional. A couple of weeks ago, I secured  a court order directing the Federal Government to establish the Nigerian education bank to enable indigent students to access loan to study in institutions of  higher education. Before then the Ecowas Court had upheld the fundamental right of every Nigerian child to universal basic education.

    Permit me to conclude this dinner speech by urging Nigerian lawyers to restore the lost glory of the NBA by  ensuring that it is led henceforth  by those who have the vision, experience and commitment to lead a progressive bar. That can only be possible if bar leaders are elected through adult suffrage.

  • Rights abuse during elections

    The 1999 Nigerian Constitution, as amended, elaborately provides for fundamental human rights in sections 33-44. The constitution however in section 45 provides for derogation to the fundamental rights guaranteed in sections 37, 38, 39, 40 and 41, on a limited circumstance. That restriction on rights exists with respect to only a “law that is reasonably justifiable in a democratic society – in the interest of defence, public safety, public order, public morality or public health, or – for the purpose of protecting the rights and freedom of other persons”. The constitution also makes allowance for certain acts of parliament in “the period of emergency”.

    Considering this limited provision for constitutional infractions, it is fair to ask on what basis are we experiencing widespread infractions of the fundamental rights of partisans during elections; which cannot be justified on the exceptions in Section 45 of the 1999 Constitution, as there are no provisions in the electoral law made to derogate the fundamental rights of persons under that section. So on what basis does our security agencies engage in clear abuse of the rights of citizens, through arbitrary arrests and detention during the preparations for elections, all in the name of security. Recall that before Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti was defeated in the last state gubernatorial election in questionable circumstance, his fundamental right and that of his followers to freedom of movement as enshrined in Section 41 of the 1999 Constitution were allegedly threatened. Also affected were the rights of his supporters and colleagues from other parts of the country.

    While Governor Rauf Alegbesola may have convincingly won a deserved re-election for a second term as the Governor of Osun State, the fact that a number of his supporters and party officials were allegedly arrested and detained before the election gives cause for concern. Also, the allegation that hooded men paraded as security agents before the election and had a field day threatening and intimidating citizens of Osun State, as if such conducts constitute part of their security brief, deserves to be thoroughly investigated and where there are infractions, those responsible should be punished. It will be unreasonable for all the alleged breaches of security protocols to be swept under the carpet, without any lessons for those who may have abused the laws of our land, for partisan purposes, being held to account.

    Part of the responsibility of our democratic process should be to train the police and the military agencies, if we must use them, for civil purposes during election. While the democratic process envisages that only the police authority should be engaged during elections, as the responsibility of the military are clearly spelt out under the law, our experience is however that our military personnel are also engaged to provide security during elections. So, it might pay our democracy better, if there is a special training for the security personnel that will be engaged during elections. If we consider the fact that security agencies will be drawn thin during the 2015 general elections which will take place simultaneously across the country, with the commander-in-chief as a partisan, then it will be understood why our security agencies must be engaged in a training process to make then less partisan.

    Such tutorial will be necessary to enable the security agencies to understand the need to respect the fundamental provisions of our constitution, so as not to bread fundamental ill-feeling that can jeopardise our fledging democracy. During that process the leadership of the security agencies, should be engaged by international institutional agencies to appreciate the difference between obedience to the laws of the land and obedience to the temporal office holders, such the President, the Governor or even high ranking legislative officials across the land. As we experience during elections, many of the agencies have the illusion that their primary responsibility is to ensure the success of the party of the commander-in-chief or the executive governor or other high ranking state official, even at the detriment of the survival of the very process, which is the democratic governance, that produced the official, for whom the security agent has become glaringly partisan.

     

    The threat from Ebola

     

    The closest to the threat from Ebola Viral Disease (EVD), I guess, is the remote fear of a nuclear show down between the world powers. Even the fearful Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) does not have as much potency as EVD to disrupt over lives. The simple reason for this near helplessness is the fact that one can become a victim of EVD, even with great circumspection, unlike AIDS. That perhaps explains the mass hysteria that herald the birth of the disease in Nigeria.

    Thankfully the federal and Lagos State governments are taking steps to contain the dreadful disease. It is such a hard task, considering the population of our country and the boisterous nature of our living. As many are asking, how on earth can we contain a disease that transmits by contact, when we must go to market, hop into a bus, warmly embrace our neighbours and eat whatever we can on the go? But as we experienced during the last Sunday service, the usual handshake which forms part of the mass ritual in the Catholic Church was skipped. Even the children are getting sensitised after their early morning bath within last week following the ridiculous hysteria that bathing with salt and warm water is an antidote to EVD.

    Thankfully again the doctors have called off their strike. While I sympathise with them over their demand for a better working condition, it would be ridiculous for them to keep away form work during this type of emergency. The world must find a cure for EVD, fast enough.

  • Killer squad on the loose?

    Killer squad on the loose?

    A new dimension has been added to the conduct of elections. Last week, armed personnel wearing masks were deployed in Osun State for the governorship election. They were carrying sophisticated rifles but their gears were not really the army’s. Who were these snipers? The development is coming against the backdrop of anti-militarisation of election compaign by Nigerians. This and the various challenges in the country have further raised anxiety about the 2015 elections, writes ADEBISI ONANUGA.

    Aside from the Boko Haram insurgency in the North, there is another sign that terrorism in gradually goring in Nigeria.

    A week to the June 21, 2014 governorship elections in Ekiti State, armed personnel were drafted to the  state to carry out surveillance before the election was held.The armed personnel were equipped with helicopters, armoured personnel carriers, patrol vans, sniffer dogs and other gadgets. The then Inspector- General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar, charged  them “to respect  the citizens’ rights, the rule of law and other rules  guiding the conduct of the election”, adding that the Police Code of Conduct must be their guide in the discharge of their duties.

    But no sooner did they get to Ekiti that they threw caution to the wind and started assaulting people without any justification. The armed soldiers committed a lot of human right abuses, maiming innocent people, including illegal arrest of those whose names were believed to have been penciled down for arrest, just  as they usurped police duties of maintaining law and order before and after the election. Even the Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, was not spared as they shot at his convoy. Heavily-armed policemen and military personnel were visible in almost every entry and exit point of the state ahead of the election.

    Expectedly, the action of the security agents received wide spread condemnation. A number of residents outside the capital were disallowed from coming back to town on the eve of the election, thus, disenfranchising them. Some non indigenes and others suspected to be All Progressives Congress (APC) members were harassed and expelled from the state by the “army”, some who are chieftains of the PDP, including two serving ministers, were allowed to “monitor” the election.

    Similar acts were  repeated in Osun State about two weeks to the August 9, 2014 governorship election. This time, the operatives in army camouflages who were hooded and wore brown boots were seen brandishing weapons. In spite of the fact that they wore military camouflages, the masks and the non-conventional boots (brown colour) they wore made it difficult for people to accept them as real soldiers. This was so because the governorship candidate of one of the parties in last Saturday’s election, was going round the town with masked security men intimidating those perceived to be in opposition.

    Reports from Osun State stated that the armed personnel mid-last week  took over the venue of a rally organised by workers to show support for the re-election of Governor Rauf Aregbesola. According to reports, stern and gun-wielding security operatives stormed the Nelson Mandela Freedom Park, venue of the rally, as early as 7am and disrupted activities and occupied the place. The securitymen gave no  reason for the unlawful occupation of the venue.

    Kunle Oyatomi, Director of Publicity, Research and Strategy for the APC in Osun, said more worrisome was the concealment of the identities of the supposed security agents some of whom threatened to shoot those who had arrived early for the programme. And like they did in Ekiti, there were a lot of human rights abuses since they arrived Osogbo.  It is these developments that observers of the polity described as “official terrorism”.

    In what pundits described as a declaration of war on the citizens of Osun State,  about 73,000 armed security personnel from the Nigerian Armed Forces, Nigeria Police Force, State Security Service, Federal Road Safety Commission, Nigerian Prisons Service, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Nigerian Security and Defence Corps were allegedly deployed in Osun State  for last Saturday’s election. More disturbing was the masked men, who shot sporadically into the air to intimidate people.

    Media reports also said on the eve of the election,  many who did not commit any offence were arrested by the armed personnel who played their well thought-out script for the election.

    National Publicity Secretary of APC Alhaji Lai Mohammed was arrested in Osogbo a few hours to the commencement of the election. He was said to be one of the many leaders of the party and supporters targeted by the security agents.  About 30 students said to be staunch supporters of the APC were said to have been picked up in Ilesa before the election. Also arrested was a member of the state House of Assembly representing Ilesa West, Hon. Fafowora Fafiyebi. In another incident, suspected PDP thugs  abducted the state’s Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Adedoyin and the Osogbo Local Government Area chairman. They were released after the election.

    Another of such illegal arrests took place at Oke Ila in Ifedayo Local Government Area, where an 80-year-old lawyer, Chief Dapo Fakayode and 50 others were taken to an unknown destination. Femi Falana (SAN) said they were eventually traced to the compound of a retired army captain in a neighbouring town where they were held incommunicado throughout the election.

    “Through my appeal to the Police Authorities, Chief Fakayode was released unconditionally after he had spent over 10 hours in illegal custody. But the 50 others were held illegally and prevented from exercising their democratic right to vote for the candidates of their choice. They were only released after the election had been concluded! Several other persons were arrested last night by the snipers. In fact, some of the detainees were brutalised by the state sponsored terrorists. In some polling units party agents were beaten up and chased away by thugs with the connivance of the security personnel,” he added.

    Former President Chief  Olusegun Obasanjo last December, in an open letter, alleged that President Goodluck Jonathan was equipping a killer squad ahead of the 2015 elections. He alleged that no fewer than 1,000 people have been placed on “political watch list” in a bid to achieve his ambition. He further accused the President of  secretly training snipers and other armed personnel at the same place that the late Head-of-State, General Sani Abacha, “trained his own killers”.

    In an 18-page letter to the President, dated December 2 and titled: A letter of appeal to President Goodluck Jonathan: Before it is too late, Obasanjo accused Jonathan of taking actions that are against the country’s best interests.

    “Nigeria is bleeding and the haemorrhage must be stopped,” Obasanjo wrote in the letter, adding that Jonathan has failed to deliver on his promises to stem corruption, and strengthen national unity and security. Jonathan, according to him, is determined to win the 2015 presidential election at all costs.

    “Allegation of keeping over 1000 people on political watch list rather than criminal or security watch list and training snipers and other armed personnel secretly and clandestinely acquiring weapons to match for political purposes like Abacha and training them where Abacha trained his own killers, if it is true, it cannot augur well for the initiator, the government and the people of Nigeria,” he further stated.

    Pundits reasoned that if Nigerians failed to take heed, then developments in Ekiti and Osun states may actually be a pointer to the fact that a killer squad may actually be on the loose.

    This position is further reinforced by the statements  creditted to the  Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega, who said last week in Lagos that the deployment of armed security during an election does not discourage people from participating in electoral process but, instead, helps to drive people’s confidence to participate in the process.

    Citing Ekiti State election, Jega said despite the presence of heavy security during the election, it recorded an unprecedented voter turnout of 49 per cent, which is the highest in the electoral history of Nigeria.

    He said: “I want to state that the use of military is not necessarily a disincentive for participation in an election. In fact, Ekiti election that we had and people were complaining of the highest level of military mobilization, had 49 per cent voter turn-out, which is the highest in all the elections we have ever had in this country. This means that the presence of security gave people the courage to come out and vote.”

    Observers who watched developments in the two states are suspicious that there may be  a sinister motive behind the deployment of masked armed men for elections other than for ensuring peace as claimed by the authority. Many of them  feared what might likely happen in 2015 given the abuses perpetrated  by  the masked armed  personnel s  before and during the  elections in Ekiti and Osun states.  Aside from the fact that they considered the deployment of armed personnel as a breach of the constitution, pundits are quick to ask if wearing of mask by “military men” is a new phenomenon in the country.

     

    Reactions

     

    Falana, however, see the development from another perspective. He said under this constitutional dispensation the President and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces lacked  the power to involve soldiers in maintaining law and order during elections. According to him, the deployment of the armed forces for the maintenance of law and order during elections cannot be legally justified in view of section 215(3) of the Constitution which vested the Police with the exclusive power to maintain and secure public safety and public order in the country.

    However, the President is empowered by virtue of Section 217(2) of the Constitution to deploy the armed forces for the “suppression of insurrection and acting in aid of civil authorities to restore law order”.

    This, in effect, means that before the armed forces may be involved in the maintenance of law and order there must have been insurrection or civil disturbances which cannot be contained by the Police. The Constitution, he said,  never envisaged that the armed forces will usurp the powers of the Police with respect to the “preservation of law and order” in any part of the country. I wish to submit that under the current constitutional dispensation the President and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces lacks the power to involve soldiers in maintaining law and order during elections. Even in the Northeast region, a state of emergency had to be declared by the President to justify the deployment of members of the armed forces as part of the extraordinary measures he was required to take to restore law and order pursuant to section 305 of the Constitution. Even then, the President had to seek and obtain the approval of the National Assembly for the said deployment for a specific period of time.

    Contrary to the positions of the Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr. Suleiman  Abah, the erudite lawyer argued that neither the Police Act nor the Electoral Act has authorised  the wearing of  masks by security personnel during elections in Nigeria.

    He drew the attention of the Federal Government to Section 280  of the Nigeria  Police Force Regulations which provides that “Orders of dress and  dress  regulations, shall be promulgated by the Inspector-General  of Police in Force Orders.”

    “The  Inspector  General of Police has neither promulgated that police  personnel involved in  election duties should wear masks nor published any such  dress order in the  Police Force Orders. To that extent, it is illegal on the  part of the police or  other security personnel not to wear name tags for proper  identification during  election duties,” he stated.

    He also observed that in the governorship election in Ekiti State, there was no  deployment of  security personnel wearing masks.  He, therefore, wondered what has warranted the desperate deployment  of masked men to police the Osun State governorship  election.

    Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ikeja branch, Yinka Farounbi said it is illegal and grossly unconstitutional to deploy the army to monitor elections in any part of the country as that assignment purely belongs to the police, and “we were not told the police could not cope.”

    “To worsen the violation, no approval of the National Assembly was sought and obtained before the redeployment. Could it be that we are being governed by illiterates who see the fundamental law of this country , the constitution, as mere book meant to dress the shelf rather than for governance.

    “As if the illegal deployment of our army to Osun was not enough, some “militants” were seen parading the street to equally monitor the election. I called them militants because their faces were masked. So, why send masked men to Osun?” Farounbi said.

    A member of the Ogun State Judicial Council, Abayomi Omoyinmi, said the deployment of masked personnels to both Ekiti and Osun states during elections is against all civil norms and contrary to civil process of electioneering. “I think it is the police that should provide the necessary security.

    Otunba Olusegun Otayemi, recalled that the  masked men first manifested behind Senator Iyiola Omisore, the Osun State gubernatorial candidate of the PDP as he moved around during the campaign.

    “I was shocked when a retinue of so called DSS operatives moved into Osun dressed in black, wielding sophisticated guns and wearing hoods like armed robbers or kidnappers. The act of terrorism is unprecedented,” Otayemi noted.

     

    Way forward

     

    Farounbi said the implication of what the government did in the two states “is that if the army did it in Ekiti and militants in Osun,  then gorillas will do it in 2015 throughout Nigeria, particularly for the presidential elections.  In fact, the results of 2015 are with us already”, he stated adding any aberration on our laws should not be encouraged in order not to truncate  the nations’s nascent democracy.

    Omoyinmi said the presence of military men could be intimidating and should not be encouraged under any guise for conduct of election “otherwise we are indirectly extending invitation to the military in our very fragile democracy. The only way to prevent manifestation of such deployment of military for 2015 election is for the government to provide a conducive environment towards preparation for the election. Allow the police whose responsibility is to provide security and prevent breakdown of law and order to perform their constitutional role as oppose to usurpation of their duties by the military”, Omoyinmi stated.

    Otunba Otayemi said: “If Jonathan can go this far to get Osun, then opposition parties, civil society groups and everyday voter in Nigeria must brace up for the worst in 2015. We must all rise up to resist this despot! With the level of desperation displayed in Osun, I won’t put anything past him (Jonathan)  in 2015.

  • Police arraign three for ‘stealing’ N6.69m

    Three men have been arraigned at a Lagos State magistrate court, Ikeja for stealing and for obtaining N6,697,000 under false pretext.

    They are Ibrahim Suleiman 30, Habeeb Quadri, 42 and Rauf Adebayo 44.

    They were arraigned before the court presided by magistrate Mrs. E.A. Fabanwo.

    The Police prosecutor, Inspector A. Samson, alleged that the defendants, about 10.45am on May 14, this year  at Ogba, Lagos conspired to obtain money under pretext, thereby committed an offence and punishable under Section 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria 2011.

    According  to Inspector Samson, the defendants obtained the amount from Temilola Akintayo to import fabrics, thereby committing an offence punishable under section 312(1a)(3) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria 2011.

    The defendant were also alleged to have stolen N6,697,000 belonging to Temilola Akintayo, thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 285(1)of the criminal law of Lagos State of Nigeria 2011.

    The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    Magistrate Fabanwo granted them bail for N500,000 each and two sureties in like sum

  • UNILAG don sues eight banks for alleged internet fraud

    A University of Lagos (UNILAG) don, Dr. Oluwatosin Sanu has sued eight commercial banks for alleged internet fraud on her bank accounts.

    In a writ of summon filed by her counsel, Prof. Akin Ibidapo Obe before a Lagos High Court, Dr. Sanu, who is an associate professor and Consultant Orthodontist in the Faculty of Dental Sciences at University of Lagos Teaching Hospital (LUTH), is  asking for  N55,050,237.54 being special general and exemplary damages for alleged negligence in the handling of her two bank accounts with the first defendant bank.

    The claimant  also asked the court for  cost of the action which she assessed at N2million.

    The claimant alleged that the negligence on her account by the first defendant bank resulted in unauthorised withdrawals of N3,050,237.54 from her two accounts through the internet and unauthorised payments into beneficiary accounts domiciled in the eight defendant banks.

    The claimant also prayed the court for interest to be calculated on the lost sum  at the prevailing rate as from September 6, last year to the date of judgment.

    The defendants bank include United Bank for Africa Plc, Ecobank Nigeria Plc, Diamond Bank of Nigeria Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Enterprise Bank Plc, Access Bank of Nigeria Plc and Stanbic IBTC Bank.

    The writ of summons is supported by a 49-paragraph statement of claim and a 70-paragraph affidavit made on oath in support of the statement of claims.

    She alleged that 20 unauthorised  withdrawals totaling  N2,580,693.25 was made from her current account with the first defendant, number 1002717118 between September 3 and September 6, last year.

    She further alleged that eight unauthorised  withdrawals totaling  N469,134 was also made from her Gold Savings  account with the first defendant, number 2060668002 between August 23, 2013 and September 5, 2013.

    The claimant averred in the statement of claim that following a petition on the matter dated October 30, last year,  made to the Nigerian Police, a thorough investigation was conducted into the alleged internet fraud on her two accounts.

    The Police, she claimed issued a report ascribing the loss to negligence and collusion of the first defendant’s servants.

    The claimant stated that on August 10, last year, she travelled to United States for a conference and vacation and that while there, received a call from her daughter, Dr. Sope Akeredolu, informing her that her bank account officer at the first defendant’s bank, Mr. Olatunbosun Alakija had been trying to reach her on phone without success.

    She said that when he eventually got through to her on telephone, she was told that there were purported “transactions” going on in her bank accounts but that no details was given.

    She claimed to have repudiated the transactions as not coming from her, more so that her cheque book and ATM card were with her in the US.

    On her return from the US, she met with her account officer and branch manager, Mrs. Patricia Ozukwe.

    She said she was told that a total transfer of N3,050,237.54 had been made on her account to various purported beneficiary accounts through the bank’s internet banking transaction.

    The claimant alleged that the first defendant breached the duty of care owed her and was negligent in the management of her accounts when it facilitated such huge withdrawals without her knowledge and authorisation.

    According to her, the first defendant or its internet banking officer ought prudently and reasonably to have contacted her through telephone,sms or electronic mail for her authorisation of the internet withdrawals, particularly where huge sum was withdrawn from her two accounts through multiple transactions in one day.

    For instance, she said N650,850.50 was withdrawn from her current account in six transactions on September 4, last year; that N660,992.25 was withdrawn from the same account in seven separate internet transactions in one day on September 5, last year while in her Gold savings account, a sum of N451,567 was withdrawn in four transactions on August 23, last year, among other internet withdrawals.

    The claimant averred that contrary to the statement of the accounts, the report of the Customer Fulfillment Centre(CFC) did not capture some of the purported withdrawal transactions.

    The claimant said she wrote a formal letter of complaint dated September 17, last year to the manager of the Idi-Araba branch of the first defendant, repudiating the unauthorised purported transactions on her two accounts and asked for the reinstatement of the funds but  that nothing was done on her request for refund.

    She claimed that her solicitor also wrote to the managing director of the first defendant, copied the Idi-Araba branch, on the issue on September 26  consequent upon which the first defendant implored the claimant’s counsel to stay action on the matter pending investigation into the allegations.                     She averred that on October 3, last year, the service manager of the first defendant, one Mr. Johnson Onyiriuka rather sent an electronic mail directly to her that her “issue” (complaint) had been “closed”, adding that the first defendant breached its duty of care owed her by sending the said electronic mail dated October 3.

    It said the email communication of the Service Manager caused the claimant to needlessly undergo pain, suffering and trauma that her loss was irreversible, adding that it was also “deliberate and contrived to intimidate the claimant into abject submission and to accept her “fate”.

    She averred that her counsel again attempted to work out an amicable resolution by writing another letter dated October 28, last year to the Manager of the Audit and Compliance unit of the first defendant requesting him to intervene but that no response had been received from the unit up till date.

    She said the development informed the petition sent to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Investigation Division (CID), Panti  to investigate the matter.

    The court is yet to fix a date for the hearing of the suit.